


At any price

by Miss_Kitten



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Angst, F/M, Family Member Death, Fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-08-28
Updated: 2017-08-28
Packaged: 2018-12-20 22:56:24
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,785
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11931063
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Miss_Kitten/pseuds/Miss_Kitten
Summary: After receiving the news about her grandmother’s death, reader goes to Remus seeking comfort.





	At any price

Time seems to still as you stare at the letter, your hands gripping the paper tightly. This cannot be true. It must be a lie, there is no other option.

Yet, despite the part of you that strongly disagrees with the news, denying it, you believe that what your mother wrote has happen for real.

In her usual, laconic manner, your mother has informed you about the most tragic thing that might have happened.

_Your grandmother died yesterday._

Simple as that. Nothing more, no information about the funeral, no details about what caused her death. She died, carry on.

You snort. She didn’t even want to admit that it was her mother. _Your grandmother,_ as if with the moment your grandma took you in, she stopped being your mom’s mother.

Your father is a Muggle, who learnt about magical world after he stepped into a relationship with your mother. She’s a squib, but none of her family members ever shamed her for that. However, she herself distanced from them, too hurt and, what you realized later, jealous.

When you were born, both of your parents assumed that you would not have magic. Much to their surprise, you have proved them wrong when on a day of your 11th birthday, an owl brought a letter from Hogwarts.

You had no idea that you had a grandma until then. Your mother immediately refused for you to be a part of magical world, but somehow her mother found out that you received the letter and came the next day and tried to change your mother’s mind.

And then you had heard the very words that made you hate your mother.

“I hoped she was normal. You can take her if you want to,” she said angrily and it took you less than an hour to pack your things and with tears streaming down your face, leave your parents.

They never even contacted you or reply to any of your letters.

And now, the person that raised you, that showed you how wonderful the wizarding world was and who supported you in the first steps to your new life was gone.

You don’t stop the tears when they start escaping your eyes, knowing better. Grief and pain overtakes your mind as you remember who proud and happy your grandma was when you announced that you were taking a position of a teacher in Hogwarts.

And your mother didn’t even have enough decency to write that she was sorry.

You fold the letter and throw it into a drawer, covering your face with your palms as a sob leaves your lips. You allow yourself to mourn for a long while, minutes turn into hours when you finally feel that you cannot bear it any longer on your own.

You splash your face with cold water and after brushing your hair and fixing your clothes, you walk out of your room, heading to your best friend’s. You need to see him, he’s the only person in the world, who can make you feel better.  

Luckily, as you step across the castle, you don’t meet anyone. You don’t want to explain why you look like a ghost, why your eyes are red and surely, you don’t need forced compassion.

As you face the door to Remus’s room, you knock a few times and let yourself in, just as you always do. It’s too early for him to be asleep, and when you enter the room, you see him sitting by the fireplace with a book in his hands.

One glance at you is enough for Remus to jump onto his feet, put the book on a desk and wrap you in his arms, rubbing your beck gently as you try to nuzzle into your chest as much as you can.

“Y/N?” he murmurs into your hair and you close your eyes, unable to speak. You shake a little when new wave of tears begins to pour down your face and Remus patiently waits as you cry, whispering words of comfort.

“M-my grandma, Remus…” you stammer, your voice hoarse from crying. “Sh-she… she’s gone, mother wrote me…”

“Oh, darling,” he says, his voice soft yet you hear sadness in it. He’s met your grandmother once and she absolutely charmed him, as he told you later. He saw how much she loved you and how much you loved her. “I am so sorry.”

“What will I do, Remus?” you whine, clenching your hands on his sweater and he holds you firmer. His scent, his warmth, his strength – it all consoles you, giving you a sense of solid presence in your life, of someone who will be there no matter what.

“What would she want you to do?”

“To not cry for too long. Live my life. Be a wonderful teacher.”

“Sound like a good plan, don’t you think?” there’s a smile on his face, you can hear it in his tone and you tilt your head to look at him. When you do so, he moves one of his hands to wipe the wetness from your cheeks and leans in to place a chaste kiss on your forehead.

“Could I stay here for a while?”

“Of course, why do you even ask?” he gives you a smile and unwraps his arms from around you, taking your hand as he leads you to an armchair, the one you especially favor in his room.

From the bedroom, he brings a blanket and tugs you in it. You feel too weak to protest, besides – your protests wouldn’t change anything. Remus is on a mission to comfort you and, truly, this is what you came here for.

He leaves the room for a moment and once he’s back, he hands you a mug with a hot tea, and takes a sit in a chair next to you. You take a sip of the drink, feeling a bit better with every nip that warms you from the inside.

“I know it’s too much to ask, but would you come with me?” you shyly inquire after a few moments of silence. Remus nods.

“Also, uhm…” you gulp, lowering your gaze onto the liquid. You hear him shift in his seat; you’re pretty sure that he frowns, worried. “I need a hug,” you murmur and Remus chuckles airily but he’s fast to cast an expanding spell on the armchair, making it large enough for both of you to be in it.

He moves next to you, wrapping an arm around your shoulder as you hoist your legs over his, climbing onto his lap. You quickly settle yourself comfortably as Remus’s arms weave around your figure.

“She was so proud of you,” suddenly, he says and you look up at him, silently urging him to tell you more. “When we visited and when you were napping, all she talked about was you. How happy she was that you lived with her, how well you cope with school, exams and that when you got an offer from Hogwarts she could literally explode from joy. She said that she might’ve failed your mother but you were her greatest joy.”

“You never told me that,” your voice comes out hardly louder than a whisper, the lump in your throat making it hard to speak properly. Remus smiles fondly at you.

“I was sure you knew.”

“I did, yes. But it’s nice to hear it from someone else.”

“Oh, and she ordered me to look after you because if not, she’d turn me into a moth.”

“Did you tell her that you turn into a wolf every month?”

“No, Y/N! I couldn’t tell her that!”

“She’d come here once a month to nurse you back to health,” you say and then sob quietly when you realize that it will never happen. That your grandma will never again care for you when you’re sick, never cook your favorite meals, never stroke your hair.

“I’m sorry, I shouldn’t start-“

“No, no, it’s okay… I just – I really miss her already.”

“I know, Y/N. But it’ll be easier.”

“Promise?”

“Yes. And I promise to be there for you when you need me.”

“Thank you, Remus,” you shift a little to be able to press a kiss to his cheek.

“Don’t mention it, Y/N. That’s what friends are for.”

“Remus?”

“Yes?”

“There’s one more thing my grandma would want me to do.”

“What is it?” he knits his brows a little, curious but still gentle with you. You inhale deeply, conjuring all the courage up. Your grandma noticed it first and made you promise her that you would confess your feelings as soon as possible.

It’s about time for you to do it.

“She, erm, she’d want me to tell a certain person what I feel for them.”

“And you want to do it _now?”_ he asks, surprised. Remus stiffs, not sure what to do. He feels like he should let you go but at the same time hopes that you are in the very place you should be, that he’s the one meant to hear your confession. He was too scared to admit his feelings for you, not wanting to be rejected, not wanting to ruin your friendship. You are the most important person to him, after all.

“Yes, because… Remus, you’re the one I wish to tell… that I’m in love with you.”

“You-you are?” he mumbles, his eyes widening slightly as he gazes at you. You’re not sure how to act now – you dropped a bomb between the two of you and you can only hope that it won’t result in your friendship being ruined.

“Should I leave?” you mutter, making to untangle yourself from him but Remus tightens his hold on you, successfully holding you in place.

“No, don’t you dare! You’re staying.”

“O-okay.”

“Because I love you, too.”

“Really?”

“Yes, I do.”

“Well, then, that’s good. Grandma was right.”

“Was she?”

“She sent me a letter, stating that you are madly in love with me and that she saw it clearly when we visited.”

“She was a wise woman.”

“Indeed, she was,” you lean in and place your hand on the back of Remus’s neck and he rests his forehead on yours. You close your eyes, sighing contently.

“You’re the best thing that’s ever happened to me.”

“Likewise, Y/N.”  

And simple as that, the sad evening brighten up as an aching emptiness in your chest filled with serenity and love. You know that with Remus you can bear the loss and grief, that he’ll be your solid rock, your unstopping support, the shoulder you can cry on and the warmth you seek at night.

He’s your everything, and more.    


End file.
